Apple Anti-Data Loss Technology in the Works


In a patent filed in mid-2003, but not published until recently, Apple is working on a technology designed to minimize the likelihood of data loss in hard drives, the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

The patent application describes the technology as a "portable-computing device protects its disk drive by monitoring for such accelerations and operating to avoid usage of the disk drive during periods of acceleration. Through such protection, the likelihood of damage to the disk drive or loss of data stored on the disk drive is able to be substantially reduced."

IBM has developed similar technology, which prevents the hard drive from operating once it detects an acceleration of the drive.

Apple's technology would prevent the drive from writing further data to the drive in the event of impending failure, in order to minimize data loss.

Analysis: As the article says, it would be useful for iPod, or for Apple's PowerBooks and iBooks. I've seen failing PowerBook hard drives after a drop on the floor (traditionally, the accepted method is to trip over the power cord and rip it off the coffee table onto a hard, polished floor for maximum impact). When subjected to such a drop, damaged drives typically accelerate and decelerate. You've usually got about two chances to retrieve the data from the drive before it fails completely. In one case I dealt with, it involved an entire book which was - you guessed it - not backed up.